Both sides agreed that the Chancellor’s visit should be made up for at a later date, said government spokesman Steffen Seibert on Thursday. The decision was made in consultation with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennet.
The evacuation mission of the German armed forces in Afghanistan is due to end shortly due to the imminent withdrawal of the US armed forces from the airport and the growing threat of terrorism. For this reason and because of the increasing threat of terrorism, Merkel may have decided to cancel the visit.
Merkel originally wanted to arrive in Israel this Saturday evening. Consultations with Bennett, President Izchak Herzog and Foreign Minister Jair Lapid were planned for Sunday. Merkel also wanted to meet with the Israeli cabinet. It was also planned that the Chancellor would lay a wreath in the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem in the presence of Bennett. At a ceremony in Jerusalem, Merkel was to receive an honorary doctorate from the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa.
A new government was sworn in in Israel in mid-June. The coalition is supported by a total of eight parties from the right to the left, including an Arab party for the first time. This marked the end of the era of long-term right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had been in office without interruption since 2009. Merkel will leave office after the general election on September 26th.